Apparatus for dehydrating oil



S. A. GIEBNER.

APPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING 01L.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 12 1919.

LAMQW. Patented Apr. 25, 1922.

WITNESS I IN VEN TOR \S. F). G/EBA/ER 0 ATTORNEYS SAMUEL A. GIEBNER, 0F BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR '10 ELECTRIC DEHYDRATING COMPANY, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORA- 'IION' OF CALIFORNIA.

APPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING OIL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL A. GIEBNER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Bakersfield, Kern County, State of California, have invented a certain new and useful Apparatus for 'Dehydrating Oil, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to an apparatus for separating water from emulsified oils, particularly those which come from oil wells.

An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for separating water from emulsified oils, and particularly from emulsions in which the water occurs in a very finely divided state. Emulsions of oil and water occur in many different conditions, varying from those in which the water occurs in large drops to those in which the water particles are very minute. Apparatus has been devised heretofore for successfully treating the emulsions in which the water occurs in large drops, but these prior apparatus have been inefficient in treating emulsions in which the water occurs in Very small particles. These latter emulsions are known to the art as hard emulsions and the object of this invention is to provide an apparatus which will successfully treat all emulsions, including the so-called hard emulsions.

The invention possesses other advantageous features, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth at length in the following description where I shall outline in full, that form of the apparatus which I have selected for illustration in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the present specification. In the drawings I have shown one specific form of the apparatus of my invention, but it is to be understood that I donot limit myself to such form, since the invention, as expressed in the claim, may be embodied in a plurality of forms.

Referring to said drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical section of a treater embodying my invention.

Figure 2 is a plan of one of the electrodes employed in the treater, showing diagrammatically its relation to the other electrode and the non-uniform electrostatic field.

The apparatus comprises a metallic tank Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 25, 1922.

Application filed May 12, 1919. Serial No. 296,349.

electrodes being preferably formed so that they may be readily placed in or quickly removed from the tank. For this purpose,

-rality of circular disc electrodes 7, these electrodes being of opposite sign to the annular electrodes. The disc electrodes 7 may be all of the same diameter, or may be of different diameters. In the apparatus shown in the drawings, the apertures in the two lower annular electrodes 3 are larger in diameter than the apertures in the other annular electrodes, and the diameter of the two lower discs 7 is greater than the diameter of the other discs. The relative diameters of the adjacent electrodesare such that the distance from the edge of the annular electrode to the edge of the disc electrode is substantially equal throughout the series. I

One of the electrodes of each lower pair, in the present instance the disc electrodes 7", is provided wit-h serrated or toothed edges, the teeth or projections 8 being preferably bent to point toward the inner edge of the annular electrode neXt below. The distance from the ends or points of the teeth to the inner edge of the annular electrode next below is substantially equal to the distance between the edges of the upper pairs of electrodes. When desirable, the serrated discs may be used throughout the treater, but since practically all of the separating action occurs between the lower sets of electrodes after the treater is in operation, I have shown may be formed on the inner edge of the annular electrode or on the outer edge of the disc electrode, and I prefer to form them on the disc electrode. While I have shown two toothed electrodes, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to that number, since one or all of the discs may be provided with teeth. 1 p c The emulsion of oil and water is vintrduced into the tank 2 atthe bottom, through the pipe 9, whi'ch-discharges through a head 10, arranged centrally within the tank, be-,

, low the lower annular electrode 3, the head being provided with apertures-to distribute the emulsion and to minimize agitation. The

emulsion passesupwardly in the tank in atortuous path, between the electrodes 3 and 7 and electrodes 3 and 7, where ity is subjectedto the action of the electrostatic field produced by the electric current. The action of the electrostatic field is to line up the fine water particles, forming complete chains of 'water particles, which coalesce, forming" drops which pass downwardly through the treater, or which unite with other drops to,

form larger masses of water which move downwardly through the emulsion. The effect of the toothed electrodes is probably to produce a non-uniform electrostatic field in through the treater, encouraging the formas tion of complete chains of water particles or globules bridging the electrodes. When a complete chain of water particles bridging the electrodes is formed, the resistance of the path is reduced sufiiciently' to permit a large short-circuiting current to flow, with; the immediate evolution of sufficient heat tovaporize a portion of the water and disrupt the short circuit. 7 I y The support 6 is supported on a frame 14,

' preferably arranged within the tank and on brackets 16 secured to the tank, In orderto permit the insertion or withdrawal of the supported on insulators 15,- which' are fixed annular electrode units from'the tank, the

upper portion 17 thereof is of increased dij ameter, so that the distancebetween the inannular electrode units. The oil from-which sulators is greater than the diameter-of the the water has been separated flows from the tank through the pipe 18, which is prefer-' ably arranged-at such a point that the-insulators areimmersed'in the oil in the tank,

the oil being avery eflicient insulator. Thewater which has 'beensep'arated vfrom the emulsion discharges through the pipe 19 which extends upward to such height that the column-of water therein balances thecolumn'of emulsion in the tank. The pipe 21,- throughwhich the water' discharges, is:-

turned-up or down to adjust the height of the column of water infpipe19 to maintain the level in the tank at the desired point.

' Alternating current from the power mains 23 is passed through'the primary of a stepup. transformer'24 to raise it to the neces- 25 is placed in series, with said prime vfor the purpose of limiting'the amount o current which maybe drawn from the power 'sary potential and an inductive reactance mains. One side of the secondary ,of the trodes and the other sideis'grounded, and

the tank is also grounded.' I claim:

In an apparatus for separating waterfrom transformer is connected to the circular -elec--- an emulsion of oil and water, a tank, an annula-r electrode arranged in said tank, a disc.

electrode concentric with said annular electrode and spaced vertically therefrom, one

of said electrodes being provided on its operating edge with aplurality of projections,

means for establishing a difi'erence of potent'ial between said electrodes whereby a se-; ries of electrostatic fields of varying concentration is established between said projec- 'tions and-the edge of the other electrode,.and

means ,for flowing an emulsion upwardly. into said field; 1

I In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set i hand at McKittrick, California, this 26th day'of April, 1919. v I SAMUEL'AGTEBNER. 

